Zell Chronicles: Forgotten
by Zell Writer
Summary: Chapters One and Two are under repair, but I have them still up. A story of Zell and his companions three years after Time Compression. R&R please.
1. Introduction

Zell Chronicles Forgotten  
  
Chapter 1: Introduction  
  
It's been three years since Ultimecia was forced into oblivion by six heroes with very special ties with very special GF's. Squall with Shiva, Siren, Brothers, Doomtrain, Eden and Bahamut. Zell with Ifrit, Leviathan, Pandemona, Tonberry and Cerberus. Quistis with Quezacotl, Diablos, Carbuncle, Alexander, and Cactuar. Occasionally Irvine would change with Zell, Selphie with Squall, and Rinoa with Quistis. LuvLuvG's were able to continuously add to their ties with the GF's. During the fight with Ultemecia, there was much Junction exchanging, the dying heroes using their last concentration on transferring their power to the second wave of fighters. After time-compression, they came back alive, strangely, in some kind of a time-space continuum. Those heroes were Squall, who was a lone wolf and a the most reluctant of them all. His sweetheart, Rinoa, was a former resistance member, known as the Timber Owls. Then came Irvine, a sharpshooter from Galbadia Garden. His flirtation had gotten him Selphie, a happy-go-lucky hyper girl that is very active. Zell was the best martial artist and he was a wild type, with his tattoo and his hairdo. Quistis was the calm one. She was the most experienced of them all, a teacher. After the episode with Ultemecia and time compression, our friends are back in Balamb Garden, speaking of plans for their next SeeD mission. The Ragnorak was parked in a renovated parking lot and the Seeds were in much less demand after the Ultemecia battle. Garden was somewhere in the middle of Galbadia, floating above a forest. Occasionally cadets would parachute down to train for missions. Cid was with Edea in the rebuilt orphanage, raising another group of future heroes. Seifer, Fujin, and Raijin were master fishermen in Balamb. Ellone was living in Winhill (she didn't like noisy city life), Laguna and the crew was in Esthar handling the latest debates.  
  
Squall sighed and put down the ruler he had been using for renovation plans. "I'm not an engineer, just the Commander. Why choose me for the job?" He yawned and stretched as Rinoa put her arms around him. She spoke in a sing-song voice, as if she were talking to a little puppy, "Aw, Squall. It can't be that bad!" Squall frowned at her, then reinstated his usual phrase, "Whatever." Something not very common with Squall now, since three years after learning to open up had really changed him. He sat back up and started measuring plans for the Quad once more. Suddenly, Irvine crashed in with Selphie at his heels, laughing and giggling. Irvine fumbled something in his hand and it dropped on to the ground. It was a necklace, simply designed and made of gold. Irvine picked it up hastily and put it in his pocket. He then pulled a giggling Selphie towards the door. "Hiya Squall!" said the ever hyper Selphie. Squall grunted in reply and continued working. Irvine looked over nosily at Squall's work. "Aren't we the interior designer?" Irvine snickered. Selphie noticed that Squall was working on the quad. Her hand reached out and slapped Irvine hard in the back of the head, knocking the hat clear off of Irvine's head. "HEY! Did I mention that's a new hat?" Irvine mumbled. Somewhere in one of the 2F classrooms, Quistis was back with her teaching duties. She was grading SeeD Level tests. It was a frustrating piece of work and although Quistis was usually calm, she seemed to always have problems inside. She came across Zell's test, who was a level 30. He passed. She gave him a promotion to SeeD level A. This was rather surprising for Zell, who didn't seem like the straight-A type of student. But, then again, he has been engorging himself in rather hefty SeeD missions that provided him with many SeeD promotions. He shot up from level 5 to a level 25 since the Ultemecia battle. Quistis then moved on to Rinoa's. Rinoa was automatically put in as a SeeD member since she was a Sorceress and all. SeeD level 28, getting to 29. She passed with flying colors. On and on Quistis went with the rest of the gang's SeeD tests and to people whom she didn't know. She was interrupted by a student cadet who raised her hand and squealed, "Instructor Trepe!" Quistis jerked her head up. "Yes?" The female student, known as Trepe Groupie #2, stood up and began to clap. The rest of the class stood up, adding a crescendo to the applause. Quistis was.slightly confused. The Trepe Groupie said in a loud voice, "We wish to congratulate you, instructor, on your return as the instructor of this class." Quistis smiled brightly and looked at the clock. Thirty seconds left before class ended. She cleared her throat and smiled again. "Thank you, class, but this still does not excuse you from next week's quiz!" Her reply was a few moans and groans from the class. Then she dismissed the class with a wave of her hand and a third smile. She followed her class to the door and exited. "Don't forget to study!" she called after the chattering students. She found Zell leaning on the side wall of the class. "Hey, Quisty," he said in an excited voice. Quistis replied in a cheerful mood, "Hi Zell. I wanted to tell you in the cafeteria, but now that you're here, I can tell you now. Congratulations on your SeeD test. You are going to be paid 30,000 gil on a regular basis." Zell did a victory dance at the news, moon-walking down the hall. Quistis laughed at this. "Where did you get that move?" Zell cocked his head to the side. "Since I got more time on my hands, I took a few hip-hop lessons." "From downloading videos off of a hip-hop site?" Quistis laughed again and dismissed the subject with her hand. Zell was staring for a while at Quistis' new outfit. He couldn't take his eyes off her lithe body. Quistis looked concerned for Zell. "Is there anything wrong?" she inquired. Zell pried his eyes off Quistis and shook his head hastily. Dammit.  
  
Meanwhile, at the Balamb fishing docks.. "I got a big one coming, ya know!" Raijin yelled in excitement. Seifer sulked as he saw his big friend/partner in crime pull in his umpteenth fish. Seifer looked at his empty bucket and sulked even harder. How come I can't catch fish with my experience and expertise? It's always Raijin who gets in the big hauls and the gil for his catches. Seifer immediately snapped out of his thoughts as Fujin exclaimed, "SEIFER! FISH! YOUR'S!" Seifer cursed under his breath as he jumped onto his feet. He started to pull in his prize. He found out that he pulled a marlin out of the water and exclaimed, "Shit, Fujin, don't just stand there! Help!" Fujin arrived with a small mallet and hit the fish, stunning it. Seifer wiped his head with a handkerchief and stared down at his prize, marveling it's size. A good ten, no, TWENTY pounds. Seifer started moon- walking. Unfortunately, he didn't see where he was going and fell in to the water. Fujin and Raijin had no hope but to help Seifer out of the water as the marlin woke up and started flopping back into the water.  
  
In Winhill, Ellone was enjoying the aroma coming from the white flowers in the shop. She arranged them in an order that she wanted and purchased the beautiful roses for a thousand gil. She walked out of the store towards the central square, passing two children who were playing with some rocks. She turned into the house Laguna used to live in and placed the flowers in a water-filled vase. She sat down on a couch in the corner of the room and opened the book right next to it. She sighed and thought, what a wonderful life.  
  
All it took was two days to plunge Esthar into crisis and the lives of many people. 


	2. Mission

Zell Chronicles Forgotten  
  
Chapter 2: Mission  
  
The roar of the Ruby Dragon could be heard all around the four corners of the Island Closest to Hell. The adventurer Caladorei took out his trusty scythe while his partner, Kandi, took out her fan-knives. Caladorei stepped forward, calling out the name of his GF, Gansal, the ringmaster. Caladorei and Kandi became ethereal as a wise, old dwarf in a rough tunic popped out of the GF world, into theirs. He looked at his opponent, the fierce Ruby Dragon and gathered energy in a ball at the tip of the staff that he was carrying. He flung it upwards and jumped after it. Gansal paused in midair and slammed the small energy ball at the monster. The Ruby Dragon recoiled at the blast felt from the explosion as Gansal left in a fiery cloud. Then Kandi stepped up and threw her arms forward, calling out, "Ultima!" The spell rocked the Ruby Dragon as it spread its wings out and roared in pain and anguish. Caladorei brushed off some dust from his long, baggy, and blue shorts and fixed up the black vest- jacket that he was wearing. He then attempted to slash his scythe into the monster's thick skin, but was blocked by a breath of fire coming from the Dragon. He went right through the flames, but his hair was slightly singed. The Ruby Dragon roared once more and hovered towards Caladorei. The monster raised its claw and brung it down in fury, but only hit the soft ground with a THUMP. Caladorei raised his scythe and cut into the Dragon's neck, wounding it severely. Kandi charged up and got ready to perform her limit break, Wind Shadow. She leaped into the air and threw her fan-knives into the Ruby Dragon and called out, "Mashizuken!!" An explosion rocked the island and the Ruby Dragon died, blood still running from its neck. Kandi removed her weapons from the fallen monster's body. The two walked over to their ship, the Emperor, a small, light craft. They took off for Dollet.  
  
Laguna was taking a stroll out in the Abadon Plains. Everybody said it was dangerous, as many of the monsters still roamed the area. But Laguna didn't really care. He was, after all, the President of Esthar and he DID still have his trusty old machine gun. He looked to his left, and turned, wanting to know what was there. This was an unexplored part of the continent. Suddenly, with out warning, he was thrown back, from a sort of force field. He got up and checked himself. Nope, no cuts, bruises, etc. He went forward again and was thrown back again, more persistently. He decided to contact the science and security forces and started heading back to the Presidential Palace. Five minutes later, he was on the phone, notifying the Science department about the incident. The Berth Esthar Science Team (B.E.S.T) was up and ready. A team of ten scientists, all specializing in different areas were coming in a trailer lugged by a heavy duty jeep with five escort jeeps along. The Esthar Marines were with their usual picks and guns. They carried extra equipment in another trailer. The heavy escort was because of an unknown case. The thing managed to fling Laguna back, why not them? They parked near the location where Laguna reported the "mysterious field". They edged closer, waiting for a response from the "object". Closer, closer. A little bit.. BOOOOM!!!!! The scientists were met with a large explosion coming from the "object". The escorts loaded their weapons and turned off safety. The explosion left a large crater, a quarter mile wide on each side. Suddenly, a large creature rose from the hole. It was like a ten-fold Chimera with enormous tentacles that were thrashing about. It spread bat-like wings and flew up into the sky. "I AM THE ROSE BEAST, KING OF THE MALBOROS, KING OF THE CHIMERAS, AND KING OF THE OCHUS!!" it boomed in a voice loud enough to be heard for miles around. The head Lieutenant of the escort unit stepped forward and shouted towards the Rose Beast, "What are your aims?!!" The Rose Beast looked down at this puny little human and shot a bolt of energy at the man. The Lieutenant disappeared. The Rose Beast said, "HE IS NOT DEAD, NAY, FAR FROM IT. HIS LIFE WILL BE FOREVER. FOREVER PAIN, ANGUISH AND TORTURE!!" With that he swooped down at the jeeps. Many of the men jumped out in time. Many, however, were killed instantly, their bodies left scorching in the Rose Beast's wake. The remaining soldiers opened fire at the monster, which shook off the damage like it was nothing. With a screech like a hawk's the Rose Beast swooped down on the remaining escorts, sending them all into oblivion.  
  
Zell ran down the hall, a cell phone in his hands. His face looked flushed, his legs were rubbery. His hairdo was starting to droop from all the sweat. Where is Squall? Only that question was on his mind at the moment. He looked left, then right, and then decided to go to the Quad. He saw Squall there in the SeeD standard uniform, giving a lesson on the basics of fighting with weapons. Squall jerked his head back and turned towards Zell. "What is it? You look like you've been running for hours," Squall commented. Zell heaved and gasped for air. A croak came out then, "Urgent message from your dad- I mean, General Kiros and President Laguna. Emergency code red, somethin' like that," Zell collapsed on the floor and lay there, panting. Squall took the phone from Zell's hands and spoke. "Hello?" "Kiros speaking. Last week, we dispatched a number of scientists and escort members and they have all disappeared, leaving no trace. However, we have gathered a number of clues and pieces of evidence. We need SeeD to help. This is an emergency, the suspected...Thing may have left. Going out." Squall closed the phone. He squatted down next to a still heaving Zell and helped him up. Zell swallowed down his dry throat and gasped for more air. "What'd he say?" Zell inquired. Squall turned to his class and dismissed them. He then motioned for Zell to follow him. Squall was silent as they walked out of the doorway to the Quad. He turned right, towards the elevator. Squall pressed the button for the bridge. The doors slid open, and they were facing the bridge. The room was rearranged to be a briefing/debriefing area. There were couches and attendants, as well as Xu and Nida. Zell sat down on one of the couches eagerly. Squall remained standing. He nodded to Nida, who went up the tiny elevator to the cockpit, followed by Xu. Then he looked at Zell, who was still sitting on the couch. Zell was whistling "Eyes on Me" while tapping his foot to the beat. The blond SeeD was obviously too tied up in his music to listen. The cockpit was actually more of an open deck, but would sometimes close up with sphere of glass. Nida was standing towards Squall with his hands crossed and so was Xu. The SeeD commander saluted and the salute was returned. Then Squall took up the microphone and cleared his throat. "This is your reluctant and taciturn Commander speaking." Xu laughed at this. "We have just received a notice from the Estharian Military. It seems as though SeeD is needed immediately. Would all SeeD members with level 25 ranks or higher assemble in the quad? Thank you." Squall put down the microphone and took up the cell phone. He dialed the number for the Presidential Palace. Zell, Quistis, Irvine, Rinoa, and Selphie came up the elevator and saluted. Zell started shadowboxing and Quistis crossed her arms. Selphie and Irvine were discussing something that could not be heard by their fellow SeeD members. Rinoa walked close to Squall and planted a light kiss on his cheek. Squall was still speaking on the phone. "What the hell, man. That thing's name is Rose Beast. Talk about your average Kindergarten naming."  
  
Seifer was in sad shape. The only way he made money was splitting the cash with Fujin and Raijin. They always bought the cheapest foods and were always hungry. Raijin was upset at Seifer and Fujin for taking his hard- earned money. Fujin was enraged by the fact that Raijin didn't catch enough fish to support them all and upset at Seifer for taking the largest, unfair shares of food and cash. Seifer was frustrated at Raijin for his superiority in fishing and angry at Fujin for giving him "bad luck". The three stooges-I mean-the posse walked into the nearest, cheapest, and dirtiest restaurant in Balamb. Seifer walked up to the head waiter, who was smoking a joint and said, "The usual, Pli." Pli nodded and brought them to their seats. The chairs were uncomfortable and worn-out. The restaurant was empty except for them and the air was thick with cigarette smoke. Seifer scowled at Raijin, who was rubbing his shin, Fujin's favorite kicking target. The Disciplinary Committee placed their orders and waited silently. Then Raijin spoke, "I'm sick and tired of you two takin' my money, ya know? Not cool, ya know? Got it from hours of hard work, ya know?" Seifer slammed his gloved fist onto the table and shouted, "I DON'T GIVE A SHIT ABOUT YOUR FUCKING CASE. I NEVER GET ANY FISH AT ALL, BASTARD!!!!!" Fujin spoke up in the voice she used in the Lunatic Pandora. She said, "Stop arguing. Seifer, you should be thankful that Raijin is giving you money off of his shares. You're hogging all the cash just because you're the biggest SHITHEAD here! You...both....should...." She paused while their orders were being placed over the table. Seifer, as usual, got the most food. Fujin started again, "You need to learn how to fish. Soon. Remember, I make use in helping Raijin stun and pull in the fish. You just sulk and scowl all day, yelling so as to scare all the fish." Seifer shut up for the rest of the meal.  
  
Ellone felt something. She couldn't explain, just something...an ominous feeling. The children outside were just fine, there wasn't a spot of trouble in sight. Then it hit her. It was too uneventful, to boring and perfect. It was easier for her to concentrate, so the troubles she felt were far away. She started to pack her bags for Dollet.  
  
The Ragnorak was sleek, shiny, blood-red, and the smoothest ship in all of Esthar. This was a sight to behold. Selphie boarded first, being the pilot. Then came Irvine, the co-pilot. Then came Squall and Rinoa, one the Commander, one a sorceress. Then came Quistis, who was the leading instructor. Then came Zell, a nobody. Zell took his lack in importance in stride and tried his best anyhow. Selphie sat in the bridge with Irvine and the rest of the crew went to the barracks, a structure in the Ragnorak for resting crew containing medicine, bunks, food, and other necessities. Selphie was given the signal to take off and so she did. They sped off to the eastern side of the world and came across Balamb. Remember now, the Garden was in Galbadia. They took a rest stop there to refill on fuel and buy some extra tanks. It was here when they encountered Seifer. Selphie and Irvine went to the hotel, since they were going to stay a night. Zell and Quistis were sleeping at the Dinchts' house. Squall and Rinoa were sleeping in the Ragnorak. They all had their place. Irvine paid the necessary 100 Gil for one night. Quistis returned one night of sleep with an hour's worth of chores. Rinoa and Squall didn't have to do anything.... Irvine had ordered the room with the largest bed. He only needed one, since he and Selphie would be sleeping together. When they entered their room, the first thing Selphie noticed was the issue of Timber Maniacs Magazine. She squealed in excitement and set to hastily reading it, so as to post another bit of info on her Balamb Garden public study panel. When she was done, she started to bounce around, humming and singing. Irvine leaned at the doorway just observing her. Wow, she can go on FOREVER, Irvine thought to himself. He walked over to Selphie and said, "C'mon, Sefie!" Squall and Rinoa were checking all the equipment on the ship. Squall had his nose buried in the Ragnorak owner's manual while Rinoa was breezing through the electronics using her sorceress powers. Squall grunted and said, "That's unfair. You get to use that hocus-pocus while I have to set to memorizing this stuff." Rinoa frowned at this and replied, "Well maybe you should just rest. I'll do all the work." Squall shut his mouth and stood, watching while Rinoa was going over all the gizmos and gadgets like she was a skilled electrician. Squall threw up his arms in resignation and set to their bunks so it would be more *ahem* comfortable. Meanwhile, Zell was washing the dishes while Quistis was sweeping the floors with Ma Dincht keeping a watchful eye. Zell finished the last dish only to find it faulty on the side. So he went back to scrubbing it until it went. Quistis managed to sweep everything in the trash can. Ma Dincht nodded in satisfaction and Zell ran up the stairs to his room. Quistis lingered behind, striking up a conversation with the mother of the house. "So you say you're an instructor in the Garden?" "That's correct, ma'am." "Well, I heard you gave my boy a high mark in his latest test," Ma Dincht smiled. "That's correct, ma'am." Ma Dincht sat on the couch and Quistis did likewise. Ma leaned over and said, "You wouldn't have a deck of TT cards, would you?" Quistis took out a fat deck of cards and drew five. Ma did like wise and they rolled to see who went first. Quistis won that minor competition and asked, "What rules are we using?" Ma took out a board with a list. Plus, Same, Same wall, and Open. They would trade one card. Quistis started by placing a Marlboro at the bottom left corner. Ma countered this with Zell's card. Quistis drew a deep breath and laid down her card, in effect flipping Zell. Ma flipped the Marlboro from the other side, but Quistis placed down an Angelo card, turning all cards in her favor with Plus. Ma Dincht whistled and said, "You have some mighty fine cards." Quistis smiled in return and noticed that Ma Dincht flipped over all of her cards with another Zell. Quistis flinched. She regained her composure and took her Diablos card, flipping Zell. Ma Dincht had no choice but to place down her last Zell and Quistis implicated the Plus rule, in effect winning all the cards on the board. Ma Dincht placed her hand on the table and Quistis drew a Zell to add to her pile and then retreated to Zell's room for a good night's rest. 


	3. Romance and Other Things

Zell Chronicles Forgotten  
  
Chapter 3: Romance and Other Things  
  
Selphie giggled, "Irvine, give me more!" Irvine said nothing, but pushed her back on to the bed and kissed her. She returned the kiss and opened her mouth wider, to allow more of Irvine's tongue to come into her mouth. She giggled again and said, "You're sooo cute, Irvy!" Irvine smiled and reached into his pocket. He took out a box about two inches both ways and opened it up. Irvine smiled and cocked his eyebrows as Selphie looked at the golden ring in the velvet box. She looked at Irvine's smiling face and whispered, "I do." They took each other and kissed again, in electricity, in warmth, in LOVE. Quistis was lying next to Zell. She didn't feel uncomforting here. She actually felt.... It was a new feeling, but with a resemblance to that of her original feelings for Squall. But this wasn't just a big sister relation.... This was more like REAL love. And Quistis was in love with Zell. His smile, his personality, and the way he took his lack of rank in SeeD and the other problems. She kind of liked his loudness and his thoughts. It was funny how it was, like this. She looked over at Zell, who was staring at the ceiling. He shifted a little closer to Quistis and he whispered, "Quisty, I never really felt this way before. I just want to tell you that, with all that you seem, professional, that I love you. You don't need to love me back; I just wanted to tell you." Quistis looked at him with shock that never really came from the calm instructor. She replied, "I love you too, Zell Dincht." Squall was in the upper bunk, oiling his revolver barrel and polishing his gunblade. Rinoa breezed in, holding her pinwheel. Squall looked up, his scar between his eyes. That pink scar that was fading away over the years. Rinoa started cleaning her weapon as well, in the bottom bunk. She paused and looked at Squall, who had his usual frown on his face and was concentrating on his Lionheart transparent blue blade. Rinoa decided to catch him unawares. She cautiously climbed up the ladder, and surprised Squall by making him drop his gunblade and stooped over and pushed him on to his back. She then leaned on him and gave him her most assertive kiss. They just held each other there for three minutes until Rinoa broke the kiss. Then it was Squall's turn. He bent her over and pushed her onto her back and kissed her. They kissed fiercely for two more minutes while Rinoa's hands wandered onto the zipper of Squall's jacket. She grabbed on and pulled, so Squall's jacket fell off. He started fidgeting with her clothes, pulling them off until she was left in a black bra and a bikini-styled underwear. The bra/underwear-clad sorceress took off Squall's clothes until he was left with black boxers. Rinoa grinned evilly and she began to edge closer to Squall, unstrapping her bra. Squall started to breath more heavily. Rinoa then took off the rest of her clothes and started to take in Squall, who was starting to pant. Squall swallowed and started to get on top of Rinoa, cupping her breasts in his hands. He then bent down and whispered into Rinoa's ear, "You are the sexiest, most beautiful sorceress I know. I love you, Rinoa." Rinoa smiled and pulled Squall's bare body in closer. They kissed each other, their tongues touching each other's tongue. Their was barely any room on that small, flimsy bunk, but they still continued to make love. Then Squall made the move. The two joined together, connected and became one. Slowly they began to surge and peak, the come back down. Surge. Peak. Surge. Peak. Then Rinoa smiled once more and they started kissing again. Rinoa didn't really feel anything, just Squall's touch which was like static electricity and a burning fire.  
  
Zell was in the same state as Squall, he was bare as was Quistis. The two new lovebirds caressed each other for the remainder of the night, kissing and touching and kissing some more. They had started when Quistis and Zell confessed their loves for each other. Zell took off Quistis' clothing and Quistis started to undress Zell. They started making love after Zell made the first kiss. Quistis kissed back, wanting more. Zell's tongue traveled over to Quistis front teeth, pushing them open to allow a more assertive kiss. They rolled over, not one who wasn't on top. Quistis nibbled on Zell's lip. Zell returned the favor by tracing her body, from her neck to her arms, then to her breasts, where Zell kept it there for a moment. Then he moved on to her hips down to her toes. He pulled her in close and vigorously pushed in. She moaned and started kissing him again, her female instinct taking over. She kissed with passion and then placed her hand on Zell's rock hard abs. Zell started to kiss Quistis at the neck, then the shoulder, the arm, the breasts, the belly, the legs. I feel like James Bond fucking a lady, Zell thought. But he didn't care. His male instinct was his master now, and nothing was in his way. Only the light of dawn would keep him from Quistis. When day finally DID come, Quistis was frantically strapping her white see-through bra and trying to get her gloves on as quickly as possible. Zell was shadow-boxing, his clothes were much easier to get on. Irvine woke up from the wake-up call resulting in his order from the hotel. He picked up the phone and hung up. He was sure last night had been a dream. He looked next to him and thought, no, it wasn't. The nude body of Selphie Tilmitt was sleeping soundly next to him and he smiled. This was certainly the kind he liked.  
  
Seifer let out a whoop in joy as he caught his next fish. His haul was nothing like Raijin's but it was a start. Fujin smiled at him and fiddled with the small muckle in her hand. She held up the small mallet and swung at Raijin's fish and shouted, "STUNNED!" as Raijin held up his prize. It was a halibut, rare in the waters of Balamb. Seifer frowned and bitterly said, "Chalk up another for Raijin." Irvine brushed his cowboy hat and went over to the docks to see if the Cure draw point was still existing there.... He just got involved in a small construction accident and needed to Cure his leg from its injury. Selphie and Rinoa followed. Selphie asked Rinoa, "Can't you use your powers to heal him?" Rinoa shook her head. "I haven't controlled my powers fully yet." Selphie clicked her tongue ad kept following Irvine. Irvine was the tallest and was wiry, all legs. Selphie was the exact opposite, very short. When Irvine limped over to the docks, he saw Seifer's Posse there, fishing. Irvine decided to take the best course of action: Ignore them. He walked over to the docks towards the purple energy emitting from the water and shouted, "Draw!" He felt the magic coursing through him and immediately cast it on himself. At least he didn't have to exhaust his own magic reserves, and he gained a couple of extra Cure. Raijin was the first one to spot the group and called to them, "Ya mind if we tag along, 'cause it's get'n boring, ya know?" Irvine's head jerked up. Those poor losers, He thought. He started to walk away. Seifer leaped in front of him and placed his gunblade at Irvine's neck. "YOU ARE GIVING US A RIDE, UNDERSTAND COWBOY?" Seifer said firmly. Irvine swallowed and complied to his wishes. Irvine swore and stormed off to the Ragnorak. Seifer smirked and headed off with a bewildered Disciplinary Committee behind him. The two -jins were wondering what happened and what was going on, since Seifer seemed to be in a state of insanity.  
  
Squall frowned, Zell growled, Rinoa gasped. Seifer was in the Ragnorak and had just managed to injure Selphie. Selphie was clutching her bleeding arm and tears were rolling down her face. Irvine quickly cast Cure, but it was blocked by Seifer casting Reflect before the Cure. Frustrated, Irvine took out his Exeter and fired two rounds, which were cut down with Defend. Irvine stood there, bewildered at how much Seifer had improved.... Quistis took her Save The Queen whip and lashed out furiously at Seifer's heels. They tried to remain defensive, because they didn't want to kill Seifer. But Seifer wanted to kill them. Seifer jumped just in time and threw a Flare Stone at the party. They decided to take the fight outside. Zell wretched Seifer and threw him out of the ship, but Seifer rolled and broke the fall. He landed on his feet and got into attacking position. Everyone was just stunned at Seifer's speed, attitude, intentions. They knew something was wrong. Squall didn't like delays. Seifer was one of them. He took out his gunblade and called to his comrades to take offensive. Seifer had no GF junction, so he couldn't have defense against status attacks. This gave Zell a chance to cast Stop on Seifer, which rendered him useless. Fujin and Raijin were hiding behind bushes all this time. They were also surprised at Seifer's demeanor. They came out without their weapons and called, "Peace, ya know?" Quistis looked at them and saw to it that they were received heartily. They bound Seifer in ropes. Then they set to place him in a prison-like area of the ship.  
  
Kiros didn't like delays either, and he was starting to get ticked off. The SeeD members were ten minutes late. At this point, it could only mean a minor tweak in the schedule. But any more time.... Ward came bounding in and a worried expression was etched on his face. He couldn't speak. Kiros said, "What is it?" Ward just motioned for Kiros to follow him. Kiros followed him to the briefing room, which was full of windows. Kiros saw that there was a large dragon outside. It had a body like a Ruby Dragon, skin like a Blue Dragon and a tail like a Hexadragon. It had six eyes and a long, thick neck. Kiros gasped and reached for the phone. He had to tell Garden about this second monster.  
  
The beach of Dollet was littered with the remains of the X-ATM092. Caladorei picked up a piece and observed it carefully. It was hard but flexible, perhaps a part of the detector lens. He looked through it and saw that it was more of a binocular type eyepiece. He placed in his pocket, planning to refine it into a sight-ring. The voice of Gansal spoke to him. He heard a sigh and the Gansal spoke up. "You want me to refine that? You'd need about five to refine into a sight-ring" Caladorei nodded at this and set to finding more. Meanwhile, Kandi was out buying fuel for the ship and refining their weapons. Kandi smiled sweetly at the old, worn cashier and paid the 10,000 gil. She met Caladorei at the side of the beach. They set off for the hotel, hoping to sleep and start their journey to Esthar the next day.  
  
Selphie was fully healed and was back to driving the Ragnorak. They were twenty hours late, and it was getting dark. Luckily they were traveling on an west-east basis, so they saved some time. An emergency call from Kiros had sent them scrambling to the control room of the ship. They launched in haste, leaving behind all of Raijin's fish. Too bad. Speaking of the Posse.... Raijin and Fujin were touring the Ragnorak and were cautious of everything they said; One slip and they might let out Seifer's secret.... When the crew landed on the Esthar Air Station, the first thing that caught their attention was the Rose Beast, hovering and circling above the city. They kept their weapons drawn in case. Selphie was to stay in the Ragnorak with Irvine to keep an eye on the Posse. The rest went down the stairs cautiously, each with their backs to each other. This would allow them all to keep a view all around. The second thing that caught their attention was the second monster that Kiros described. For now, they would use the codename King Dragon, for it looked much like the king of dragons. As they approached the Presidential Palace, a combination of a high-pitched squeak and a low-pitched bellow filled the air, "I AM THE KING OF DRAGONS, AS YOU HAVE GUESSED. BUT I WILL BE ADDRESSED AS THE CLOUD BEAST!!!!" The voice came from the Cloud Beast, or the King Dragon. The group was tense. Quistis held in her mind an Ultima spell. Squall loaded his Lionheart and turned off the safety. Zell cracked his knuckles and pulled his gloves on tighter. Rinoa placed her pinwheel on. They walked towards the guards stationed at the gate. Squall saluted and said, "Codename Alpha." Rinoa saluted and said, "Codename Beta." Zell saluted and said, "Codename Gamma." Quistis saluted and said, "Codename Delta." The guards looked at them for a while and then looked at their weapons. Without a word, the guards let them through. Squall led the group down the hall. The guards posted to the entrance to the Presidential Master Room opened the doors, revealing Laguna, Kiros and Ward at the area looking at a 3-D projection plate of the two known Beasts. When the three saw the three coming, Kiros and Ward bowed while Laguna approached them in a formal way. He turned to the group and said, "'SUP! Squall, son. And Rinoa together, wow! Zell, you've grown since the last time we've met. Quistis, how are you teachin'?" Kiros' face turned six shades of red and used his elbow to jab Laguna in the ribs. Laguna winced and grabbed his leg, complaining about his cramp. Kiros stepped up and said, "Please excuse the rather (ahem) careless President for not keeping the secrecy of your names. Alpha, Beta, please wait here. Gamma?" Zell stepped up. "Please take extra care of your assignment's secrecy and your life as well, Gamma. You will be stationed at the Esthar AA fortress. As soon as the Beasts are down, attempt to commence battle with them. If you fail, immediately press the Panic Button." At this point Kiros handed Zell a small box with a button inside. "The uses for the button will be kept secret even from you." He then turned to Quistis, "Delta, you will support Gamma in his mission." Quistis saluted. Back in the Ragnorak, Selphie was cleaning up the mess hall while Irvine was taking his shift as Prison Guard. Seifer was in the cell, protected by laser bars. Seifer was pacing endlessly back and forth from the sink to the cot of his cell. Occasionally he would swear and plead to Irvine of his sudden outburst but the sharpshooter would ignore him every time. Then Seifer would throw up his arms and continue pacing. Irvine shifted in his seat and changed his ammo from Normal to Fast. Irvine thought it wise to keep a ready frame of mind. 


	4. Crossroads

Zell Chronicles  
  
Forgotten  
  
Chapter 4: Crossroads  
  
Caladorei loaded the gas tanks of the Emperor and sat in the cockpit of the ten-meter ship. He flipped a couple of switched and checked to make sure that Kandi was strapped in the backseat. Although the ship was built for a crew of three and a passenger capacity of ten, they rarely even used the extra seats. Caladorei started singing along to the Bee Gees on the radio. "I've seen the story, I've read it over once or twice..." Kandi nodded her head to the tunes.  
  
Suddenly, a large BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMM!!!!!!!!! filled the sky. The ship was suddenly jolted by an explosion from the ground. The next thing that happened was a missile zooming straight past them. This was followed by a flare on the side of a wing. The ship started going out of control...and the radio ceased to churn out Bee Gees as their telecommunications were sent down with an electromagnetic pulse-wave. The two donned emergency jump-suits with parachute packs on their backs. Caladorei forced his way through a tumbling cockpit towards the door. He made a grab for his scythe and snatched Kandi's knives. He took out a handgun and shot the rope apart, which was tying the emergency exit door to the hinge. He opened the door and jumped down with Kandi dropping right next to him. At a mere thirty feet from the ground, their parachutes deployed, decelerating their drop. As soon as the duo hit the ground, they drew their weapons and looked around. They sliced through their parachutes and were met by ten jeeps driving towards them. To their left lay a smoldering chunk of metal, which used to be their ship. They got in a defensive position while Kandi Scanned jeeps. The jeeps read out as Estharian forces accompanied by two SeeDs.  
  
Zell was sure the gunner made a mistake.... The unidentified shape they shot down was in the shape of the Cloud Beast, but it did not flap its wings. They knew it was not the Dragon, but the pilot seemed to fly in a military fashion. Strange. Otherwise, the two people who jumped out like trained professionals and operated much like SeeDs. Even stranger. Xu and Nida weren't supposed to send backup.  
  
Zell and Quistis jumped out of the jeep and stepped towards the two cautiously. This triggered an immediate reaction from the girl clad in yellow. She reached into her pockets and threw a Gysahl Green at Quistis and Zell. A tiny little Chicobo popped out and looked questionably at the two. Zell then realized who it was. "Boco! It's you!" The tiny yellow- feathered bird jumped up and down excitedly, happy to see that it was somebody familiar, not like the two strangers who just captured him. Caladorei looked baffled. Kandi's eyes were wide in shock. Zell crouched down to pet the fast-growing Chicobo, who "WARKED!" in happiness. Boco was now a good three feet tall now, and was getting stronger from fighting as a true "warrior" Chocobo. Soon he'll be old enough to ride on. They were also raising a moogle that they called MiniMog. Anyway, the two dumbfounded adventurers regained their composure and got into fighting position. They brought up their weapons and rushed at the semicircle formed by Esthar soldiers. Kandi threw dozens of knives, immobilizing the gunmen at the jeeps. Caladorei slashed his way through shotgun pickaxes. Shots bounced off of his Protect Stone like super balls. With all of the Esthar soldiers neutralized, Gamma and Delta quickly checked their junctions. When they were done they faced their adversaries. Caladorei gripped his scythe with both hands. Kandi brandished the remaining twenty knives she had around her waste. Gamma and Delta, as they came out from scan, were now holding spells at the edge of their minds, getting ready to cast them. Delta held a whip and was dressed in pink with dark colored gloves and boots. The other bore a tattoo of unique design on his face while wielding no weapon. Kandi decided to take Delta. Caladorei chose Gamma.  
  
The sun now shone brightly above the Abadon Plains, which was now a battlefield for the four fighters, who were now staring each other down. Zell clenched his fists. Quistis snapped her whip. Caladorei sharpened his scythe with a stone in his pocket. Kandi was fingering her knives. Quistis acted first. Her flexible elastic whip extended twenty feet with the likeliness of a fast-striking cobra. SNAAP! Save the Queen created a line of red blood trickling down on Kandi's calf. Kandi was not completely idle, however. She drew her knives and threw a few. Caladorei seized the moment without a moment's hesitation; and yelled, "CHICK FIGHT!". The unsuspecting Zell jerked his head up to see Quistis and Kandi locked in a fierce Chick Fight ;) each one using their skills to great multitudes. Caladorei came upon Zell with a slash to the neck.  
  
The moment Zell thought he was going to die because of a moment of distraction came with mixed feelings. Sorrow, anger, embarrassment. Zell saved himself the very last moment. The blade missed his head by a millimeter, shaving off an inch of Zell's cowlick. Under his breath he mumbled, "I needed a haircut anyway...."  
  
Caladorei skidded to a stop before his momentum could make him slam into the ground. He twisted in midair and landed on his feet. Zell clenched his fist. Caladorei called out the name of his spell. "HOLY!" Zell stood his ground and just grinned in return. The spell threw around lots of light but when it faded away, Zell was still standing there with the goofy grin still on his face. All thanks to good junctions. Zell was equipped with Shell, Full-life, Protect, and Life on his Elem-Defx4. Plus Zell got a high spirit rating from extensive training and devouring. Caladorei switched strategies....  
  
Meanwhile, Quistis was fighting an undecided battle. Kandi was whipped in several places, but Quistis had taken a nasty wound in the arm. Luckily, the whip only needs one arm to operate. After a moment of heavy slashing and snapping, the two females stopped fighting. Quistis took an X-potion. Kandi Cured herself. Then the fighting resumed. This time Quistis could use both arms.  
  
Kandi called forth her GF, Plu-Sac. A light appeared in the sky, outshining the sun. A dragon came forth, similar to Leviathan, but shaded with red and orange. This was the Dragon of Light, the Scan turned out. Only thought to be a myth, it does a random elemental attack, decided by its color. Plu-Sac turned into a purple, signaling poison. Quistis was thrown back by a sudden burst of light.  
  
The battle ensued.  
  
  
  
Irvine oiled his Exeter again and took out The Girl Next Door magazine. Seifer was sitting on the bed, hunched over. He was getting very twitchy by now. Irvine checked the clock. His shift was about over.  
  
Meanwhile, Selphie was organizing files that seemed of little importance at the time. She sighed and looked at the clock. Four more minutes until her shift....  
  
Raijin was the first to notice. Fujin followed, taking the keys that were on the stool left by Irvine. Obviously Irvine's clock and Selphie's clock were conflicting. Seifer walked out of the cell as if there was no trouble at all. All of his nervousness was gone. He was the cocky leader of the Disciplinary Committee once again.  
  
  
  
Ellone boarded the train heading for Dollet. In her suitcase were all of her belongings.  
  
The train ride was relatively short and was also very bumpy. When it came to a halt, Ellone got off to be met with the Artists' Street. This was where the Queen of Cards lived. At the moment there was no hustle and bustle, as it was late morning, and the streets were empty save a few policemen and shop owners. Ellone headed towards the hotel.  
  
At the room she closed her eyes and sensed a feeling coming strongly from the East.  
  
Esthar....  
  
  
  
Laguna reached into his pocket and drew out a little machine, like a cellular phone, only smaller. He gave it to Kiros with a nod, who showed it to Squall and Rinoa. "This is the best we could do on short notice. It will beep more and more persistently when you near a foreign object, in this case, the two 'Beasts'. Now, if you don't want it to beep, just turn it off."  
  
"Yeah, it can get really annoying when you want to make surprise attacks!" Ward's face seemed to agree with Laguna's remark. Kiros sighed and shook his head. He then looked at Squall and Rinoa with a look of burden, as if he was feeling weighted by his jobs. Laguna then said, "Kiros does most of the brains and speaking for us. He is in a position of...," Laguna clutched his cramping leg and muttered, "Just go and do your mission...."  
  
Squall let out a sigh of relief as he quickly stepped out of the bore that Laguna was giving him. Rinoa thought that she could finally be able to get a chance to further learn and harness her sorceress powers.  
  
The two were out, out to do their work. The work of a SeeD. The fields were empty, and the soldiers that escorted them from the city were going back. Squall and Rinoa were left in the middle of the meadow. The sun was straight up in the sky now, brightly illuminating the surrounding mountains and plains. In the distance they could here faint screeches as the beasts circled, more distantly. The Rose Beast and Cloud Beast were now nearing Trabia. Squall and Rinoa made their way South, where their mission orders lead them. They would proceed to a defensive post at the Sorceress Memorial. There were delays, however.  
  
Just at the same time, Zell and Quistis were getting nowhere. The two opponents they fought were as hard as rocks. This was true for the opposition as well. Each thought of the other highly. Now was the moment of decision. Neither was holding back.  
  
Neither would hesitate to use their best.  
  
"Shockwave Pulsar!"  
  
"Mashizuken Cross!"  
  
"Duel!"  
  
"Ballistic Tribulation!"  
  
Quistis' attack struck first. The force of the heavens spun out in front of Caladorei and Kandi. Quistis' own body and Zell's were transparent. When the light passed away, it was Kandi's turn. She leaped forth with her loose, yellow sleeves hanging out with the wind. Then she brought forth her wrath by throwing her fan-knives in many directions, chiefly towards Zell and Quistis. Quistis and Zell were pierced in several locations, straight through. Luckily for them, Mashizuken Cross was a gravitational attack, so only four-fifths of their HP was consumed.  
  
Their was a light. Squall noticed the pattern of swirling and knew right away that it was Shockwave Pulsar. Rinoa saw things like meteors falling from mid-air. Strange. Obviously, there was a battle going on. A big battle. It was going on about a half a mile away. They could make it in two minutes....  
  
Zell's eyes were flaming red now. He charged up, an aura of power surrounding him. He rushed forth at his adversary, Caladorei. With exactly thirteen seconds before his energy rush ran out, Zell chose only his best. Booya, Punch Rush, Mach Kick, Heel Drop, Dolphin Blow, Meteor Strike, Heel Drop, Mach Kick, Punch Rush, Booya. The pattern repeated itself until Zell broke off. Caladorei thought the beating was over and let his guard down. This gave Zell a chance to do his grand finale. My Final Heaven.  
  
Zell's best punching fist was engulfed in light as he rushed light speed around the world. Then he let loose his fury upon the two enemies. Both were thrown back and were tittering between life and death. Caladorei let loose his attack.... This was the supposed finish to a long battle....  
  
Caladorei was rushing at the two SeeDs, leaving a trail of fire. at the last moment, he cut off of his rush and went around Quistis and Zell, causing the blaze to surround the two. Zell frantically looked around, searching for an exit from the cage of fire, when suddenly, Caladorei came down from the sky and sliced towards Zell. This time, Zell couldn't dodge. It was all too fast.  
  
Squall looked at the ring of fire forming ten yards away. He saw the blurred figure leaping up towards the middle. He saw the look on Zell's face. By pure instinct, he threw his gunblade.  
  
Zell saw it the last moment. Caladorei's scythe was raised high over his head. He swung. Time froze. It was milliseconds before scythe would hit the party, annihilating the two SeeDs. The Lionheart connected with the thrown scythe. Both were hit off course and fell to the ground. Zell looked to his left and saw Squall there, next to Rinoa. The two were just in time to save Zell and Quistis. Squall picked up the blue gunblade and looked at the two adventurers, then looked at the two SeeDs. Obviously, the battle took over an hour. He then looked at his partner, Rinoa.  
  
When the fire ring burned down, both parties looked at each other for ten minutes without speaking. Then Caladorei spoke, "That was the first time my most powerful limit break failed to obliterate an enemy."  
  
"Well, with tough crackers like us, you know it won't work." Zell laughed at his own joke.  
  
"Actually, you would've been killed had it not been for my gunblade," Squall stated with a cold stare to Zell.  
  
"Until we have done our mission here, we will avenge our loss. Someday, we will meet again," Kandi said.  
  
"And what is your mission?" inquired Quistis.  
  
Caladorei faced the blond instructor and said, "We are here to find a crystal. It is beyond our knowledge about the whereabouts it is. All we know is that it hides a great and powerful secret. We are not the only ones after it. The Fears, four of them, are all looking towards it as well. They seek it for its enormous spoils and glory and power. We seek it to destroy it, not allowing the Fears to reach it and their prime goal: the destruction of all things living."  
  
  
  
Seifer was almost about to accomplish his first task. He was to find himself a decent meal. And the kitchen aboard the Ragnorak was more than adequate to fulfill his wishes.... 


	5. Links Made

Zell Chronicles  
  
Forgotten  
  
Chapter 5: Links Made and Crystals Found  
  
In the Presidential Palace, Caladorei and Kandi were busy explaining their mission. "It is a priority that we find this crystal and destroy it at once!" Kiros agreed.  
  
"Let us explain about the Fears first. There is number one," Caladorei held up one finger. "He is the King of the Marlboros, Chimeras, and Ochus. He is the most poisonous, representing the drain of life, the present, and the inner evil within us all. Then there is two." Caladorei added another finger. "He is the King of all the Dragons. He is the strongest of the Fears, meaning that he will be very straight in his battle with us, which we will fight eventually. He represents the pain of fighting, the future, and the violence which we are all capable of."  
  
Squall shifted uneasily in his chair. This was the enemy they were fighting now.... Rinoa was silent, Quistis was nervously fingering her gloves. Zell was listening intently, instead of shadowboxing in the corner. Laguna and the Presidential Committee (Kiros, Ward) were inputting this data into the Esthar files.  
  
"The third," Caladorei went on, "is the last of the three 'servants'. He is the king of the undead, the zombies. Think of all the Bloodsouls, Vysages, Forbiddens, and Gerogero put together, not to mention Abadon. His form is never revealed, and he represents the death result from war, the past, and the unwanted curses that we give to others. Be warned, do not equip Doomtrain, for the two are cousins."  
  
Luckily for them, Doomtrain was not currently junctioned, so he could not overhear the conversation.  
  
"The fourth, and last, is their elder brother and King. He represents all three of them. We do not know yet which creature he is linked to, but he is most likely all three."  
  
The room turned stone-like silent. Everyone looked at each other with the same question in their minds. What now?  
  
  
  
Seifer munched greedily on some MRE's and gave Fujin and Raijin some, saving the largest share for him, of course. Fujin was careful in eating only so much so she wouldn't get sick. Raijin was cramming down MRE's by the mouthful. Then Irvine caught them.  
  
Seifer looked at Irvine before making a dive behind the cabinet. He reached for his Hyperion, which he spotted lying in the corner of the kitchen. Irvine took aim and let loose a round of energy. The Pulse ammo completely knocked the Gunblade out of Seifer's hand and sent it sprawling into the air, and got stuck in the door of the refrigerator. Fujin whipped out her Pinwheel while Raijin drew his staff. Irvine eyed his opponents. They were easy enough in Balamb and even easier in the Lunatic Pandora. What can go wrong this time, he thought. Then Seifer joined in, having apparently gotten back his gunblade. Raijin acted first by bashing Irvine on top of the head. Irvine rubbed this spot and shot Raijin twice in the chest. Raijin fell to the ground. Irvine turned his aim to Seifer and shot four times. Seifer dodged the first two, but took the third one in the arm. The fourth ripped into his gunblade. Seifer lost grip of his Hyperion again, this time letting it clatter to the floor. Fujin was burning with rage at their situation and channeled all of her rage into her Sai attack. The attack slashed only air, because Irvine dodged just in time, but the force of the blow blew off his hat, slightly singeing it.  
  
"That was a new hat...," he quipped, hastily picking it up. Seifer had just picked up his gunblade and was charging at the distracted Irvine. Luckily, and right on time, Selphie jumped in between and casted a Wall, blocking Seifer off. Irvine brushed off the dust from his burned and sliced hat and placed it on a table nearby. He reloaded.  
  
Selphie was now actively in the battle, fighting off Fujin and Raijin with her Strange Vision. Irvine was preoccupied with Seifer, who was relentless in his attacks. Irvine casted Haste on himself, allowing him to dodge many of the knight's attacks. Then he casted Flare on Seifer, who sucked up the damage like a sponge. He fell back but got up just as quickly and then countered with a small Fire. Irvine was unharmed, but there was something about this fire that told him trouble was coming...because regular Fires aren't this smoky. The thick black gas was choking Irvine, and he couldn't see in front of him. Without warning, he was slashed by Seifer. SLICE, SLICE, SLICE. Irvine felt the pattern. Blood Ceremony. Irvine, clutched his Exeter Rifle in both hands. It was natural that Seifer was unforgiving, but this time, he was cruel beyond comprehension, putting every effort to kill Irvine. Using his extraordinary gunman senses, Irvine found the source of the slashes and fired towards it. Seifer took it in the chest and hit the linoleum floor of the kitchen. Once again the gunblade fell out of Seifer's hand, this time for good. Irvine checked to see if Seifer was alive, which he was. Irvine casted Cura and Sleep on Seifer. Selphie had Raijin on Berserk and Fujin on Blind. She put them both to Sleep. Irvine observed the kitchen. Cleanup's gonna be a bitch, he thought.  
  
  
  
"Tell me again why we're here!" asked Zell. Caladorei looked at him as if to say, "You know exactly why..."  
  
They were in Odin's chamber, in the Centra Ruins. The place was streaming with monsters. Zell kicked up some dust and surveyed the scene. It was a wreck. Sure is different from the last time we saw it..., he thought. He tightened his gloves and ran his fingers down the left side of his face, with the tattoo. He then took off the small pouch on his back and checked his items. He had Elixirs, Hi-Potions, a Hero, a Holy war, X- Potions, a Phoenix Down, and several Magical Stones. He also looked in the pocket in front. A small comb, a travel-sized bottle of gel, and a tiny mirror was inside. Satisfied, Zell zipped up the pouch. He turned and followed the rest of the group and stayed in the back, whistling a tune.  
  
Quistis was second closest to the front. She was observing the walls of the chamber, engraved with unique Centran designs. There were various illustrations of monsters and historical events. The one that caught Quistis' eye was of five Centran Priests surrounding pentagonal a platform with a crystal embedded upon the center. She called over the rest the rest of the group, "Hey, people! I found something!" Everyone quickly headed over to Quistis. She showed them the engraving which brought everyone to the conclusion that it WAS in fact, the crystal. The trouble was finding it now. And it would be a lot easier with the clue that they just got. The crystal was within possible reach.  
  
As the group continued, Quistis continued looking around for clues. Zell was behind, as usual, his eyes glued to the ceiling. At last they reached the end of the hallway. And it was here that the first real breakthrough came....  
  
In front of them was a collapsed chandelier. That was nothing. But BEHIND it.... The group there way around the chandelier. And there was nothing visible. But it was like somebody turned down the temperature about fifty degrees. And the sky, or ceiling turned black and starry. Meteor. The asteroids summoned from space crashed down on the group before they even knew what was happening. When the spell ended, Gerogero (or was it?) jumped off the balcony above. The group quickly prepared their weapons. The Gerogero that they faced was red. Quistis did a quick scan. It was Gerogero's older brother, a stronger undead boss-class monster that drained energy and summoned creatures to assist it.  
  
The thought occurred to everyone at the start of every tough battle. When a party member is KO'd, will the Phoenix Down heal them? Will the curative spells? If after trying to revive a dead party member, and didn't succeed, will they be gone forever? Not yet has Squall seen on of his fellow SeeDs actually die before, but the anxiety and the nervousness from holding his breath as he laid the Phoenix Down, waiting for and praying for the effects to take place. It never failed for Squall, but Zell was faced with another fate. It was the girl in the library, with the pigtail. She had passed the test and was under leadership of Zell. Their mission was simple: Drop onto Battleship Island from the Ragnorak and collect the "A" and "B" mechanisms. A Ruby Dragon had given her a fatal wound.... A wound which Full-Lifes, Recovers, Phoenix Downs, and Revives could not heal. She was lost. At first, Zell had felt the gash deep in his heart. But he recovered in two month's time and has had his eyes on Quistis ever since.  
  
Quistis started lashing out her whip at the monster's heels. The boss, Merimeroi, was unfazed at the stings on its feet. It lunged at Quistis, knocking her over while proceeding to perform an attack. The rest of the group was not completely idle, however. Squall loaded his weapon and stuck his Lionheart straight into the Merimeroi's back. The monster roared and knocked Squall off its back and threw a Meteor stone at the group. All of the adventurers were hurt, but not on a major scale. Zell threw a Holy Stone at Merimeroi. The divine energy sent him sprawling, but the monster picked himself up quickly and counterattacked, this time leaving Zell on the ground. Rinoa shot her Angel Wings at Merimeroi and followed up with Angelo Strike. Merimeroi whipped around and knocked the poor dog to the ground. Caladorei leaped and brought his scythe down for a powerful slash through the tough skin of Merimeroi. Merimeroi hit him with Pain, causing evil statuses within Caladorei. He dropped his Scythe as he felt the Poison wearing him out. Kandi had an Elixir handy and it soothed Caladorei. Quistis started summoning.  
  
At this point, Centra Ruins had faded away and they were fighting on an ethereal surface. Thusly, Quezacotl could not be summoned. Quistis lashed out in fury with her whip and called a Shockwave Pulsar. Merimeroi was stunned by the initial light, and then was incinerated by the attack, dying, and returning the heroes back to Odin's Chamber.  
  
"That was EASY!" said Rinoa. Quistis rolled her eyes. Zell checked his pouch again. Squall was unloading his Lionheart. Rinoa gave a G- Returner to Angelo, as Phoenix Downs didn't work.  
  
"Base Omega, this is unit Delta, Over," said Caladorei through his communicator.  
  
"We copy, Over," came the reply form Kiros.  
  
Ellone was staring at the red sky of Esthar. Red because of the Lunar Cry, the event that threw all of Esthar into turmoil before they regained control two years ago. She walked towards the Presidential Palace. ZOOM! A car flew by. Ellone noticed that it was the Presidential limousine that Laguna and Gang rode in. Why were they in such a hurry?  
  
Seifer started going into frequent fits. The entire Disciplinary Committee was wiry and fidgety. Irvine took no notice of this as he continued reading a catalog of various types of ammunition. Quantum Ammo, Ice Ammo, Thunder Ammo, Homing Ammo, Elemental Ammo, Pulsar Ammo, Pulse Ammo, Gattling Ammo. All of these were top-notch. Irvine decided to get 100 of each from a small store at the side of Dollet. He looked at various guns that he could buy only at East Academy Side Station. Not that his Exeter was not enough, but he could use a sniper or a sub-machinegun, or even some rockets. Irvine decided to order a sniper, two subs and one rocket-launcher. Irvine decided to make his address at the mailbox of Esthar, in his own private account. It was the only thing that didn't keep moving around.  
  
Irvine looked at the clock. 7:00 p.m. He wondered how everybody else was doing.  
  
And then, it happened.  
  
Seifer clutched his gloved hand. Fujin clutched her hand, and so did Raijin. An aura of bright red light flashed. Irvine sent his order and then looked at the Disciplinary Committee with a look of utter shock. The three had risen two feet off the ground, having have the effects of Float. Then they were moving faster due to Haste. Many other support magics were taking effect on them, and when Irvine tried to cast Dispel, but all it did was make the effects stronger.  
  
Then, Seifer's glove slipped off of both hands and there it was; a design on the hand of the three; a middle crystal surrounded by five Centran Priests. Seifer and the other two lashed out their light onto Irvine, making him float up into the air.  
  
At first there was just a searing pain, like a thousand white-hot knifes slicing in and out on all parts of the hand, a pain that lasted for all but two seconds. The design was burned into his hand. Then it was the visions. The vision of Fury as a man was being whipped. The vision of Sadness as one who was loved was lost. The vision of Happiness as children received presents. Then was the urge to call out the name of Selphie, to complete the circle. Irvine did so, but instead of sound, the red light surrounding the four reached all the way into the bridge, capturing Selphie, who saw all of the vision as they all had. Then they spread out evenly and formed a circle around the center of the jail cell. Without warning, the five were dropped onto the ground. And a clinking sound was heard. Irvine looked at his hand. The design was fading.  
  
He got himself up and looked around. He noticed the clock. They had been floating around for ten minutes. He looked at the ground. There was a red crystal. Irvine reached out to grab it, but Seifer pulled his hand away, a look of terror in his eyes.  
  
"If that thing was strong enough to make me crazy, then it is more than likely to cause you harm." Irvine nodded...and continued reaching for the crystal. Fujin Pulled him away this time.  
  
"CRYSTAL. DANGEROUS," she growled. "ALL OF US. CONTROLLED!"  
  
The crystal began glowing. Irvine decided to let it go. Until the ship started shaking.  
  
Outside, the Rose Beast was shaking the Ragnorak like a rage doll. "GIVE ME THE MASTER CRYSTAL!" it bellowed. Irvine stuffed the crystal into his tightest pocket and took out his Exeter.  
  
All five rushed out to find the road leading to them crushed, so they had nowhere to go and no choice but to fight. The Rose Beast lay the dented Ragnorak down and roared with the strength of a thousand lions. Irvine loaded his gun with AP ammo and executed a quick scan. Selphie cast Aura on everybody and, thanks to Expend 3x-1, only needed to spend two Aura. Seifer swung his gunblade and noticed that it was unloaded, and he was out of ammo. Irvine noticed this and tossed five Pulse ammo. "Use 'em wisely!" he warned.  
  
Fujin attached her two pinwheels together to create a Sai-Blade. Raijin started bombarding the Rose beast with multiple special combos. Irvine trained his eye on his target. He squeezed off two rounds to get a feel, and then shot over and over again until his stock of AP ammo was lost. Irvine cursed and loaded Fast ammo. Seifer shot Fire Cross at the Rose Beast and got to using Blood Ceremony, successfully slashing and executing fire five times until his ammunition ran out. He looked in his pocket. There was a badge with a Moomba on it. It was the Friendship. Chanting the words to summon a Moomba, Seifer threw the item onto the ground and Moomba appeared and used his razor-sharp claws to execute an attack that made even the Rose Beast recoil in pain.  
  
And so they fought on and on. 


	6. The Third Fear

Zell Chronicles Forgotten  
  
Chapter 6: The Third Fear  
  
Squall looked at the pentagonal structure. "How do you suppose we go about getting the crystal?" he asked. Quistis studied around it and even checked the center for the crystal. Caladorei had told them the crystal was palm-sized. She looked at the carving on the side of the pentagon. On it was carved some Centran message. Quistis took out her hand-held computer and looked up the lettering. It said: He who finds this will be a crystal bearer. The five crystal bearers who forget this place will be the ones who find the Forgotten Crystal. Five sides to a pentagon, five crystal bearers. Quistis showed this to the rest of the group. Zell cocked his head nonchalantly. "All of us found this, now let's just forget it," he said. "It isn't that easy," Rinoa pointed out. "Oh?" Caladorei joined in. "With these amnesia pills we can forget all about things that happened ten minutes ago." His idea was uncanny. Zell volunteered for it first. Squall however, took the pill first and exited the room escorted by Zell, who was the one to keep remembering the information, despite his protests. Rinoa followed and was escorted by Zell out of the room. Caladorei went in a pair next. Zell brought them both out of the room. Then he turned to Quistis. "This is it, huh?" he said it more like a statement than a question. "Yeah," Quistis looked away. She looked down at her feet and looked at the pill. She put it into her mouth and gulped it down. Her eyes blanked out s the effects of the pill started taking place. Zell brought her out of the room and waited as the others started to regain control over their nerves. Once they were all done being brainwashed, they completely vanished. Zell looked around. There was nothing. Zell ran to up and down the halls, attempting to look for the rest of his friends. He was met by a phoenix instead. It turned its red, fiery eyes to glare into Zell's deep blue ones. It spread out its wings. Zell remembered the Phoenix Pinions. He reached for some, thinking that he could fight fire with fire. Then he saw that the Pinions had been corrupted. On them was a design of a triangle with dozen parasites in it. He placed them back into his pouch and turned face to face with the possessed phoenix. He scanned it and it turned out that the phoenix was under control by the Third Fear. He knew how to deal with possessed creatures. He was ready.  
  
Squall raised his gunblade to face the Rose Beast. Some unknown force had forced them here and now they were in for the fight of their lives, ten on one. Irvine was so concentrated on his shots he barely noticed the other five until the Fear recoiled back, allowing time to look at certain things. Seifer and Squall were getting ready to execute a gunblade combination that they had learned in Garden, called Steel Spiral. The name said it all. The two would hold on to each other's hands while twirling towards the target, in this case, the Rose Beast. The sheer energy created by the duo shook the ground as the Rose Beast's hide was being gashed into repeatedly. At last the friction was too much as Seifer and Squall slowed down their frenzy. Caladorei followed up with another big hit with Ballistic Apocalypse. After trapping the Rose Beast in a circle of flame, he proceeded to make the wound deep enough to affect the Fear with magic. Quistis summoned Quezacotl. Soon, the Beast was racked with damage, but still refused to stay down. The ten fighters, however, were getting exhausted, and constant Cures couldn't take away the fatigue. At last the group all summoned their best GF's and let loose the fury of Guardian Energy. Boco did a spectacular Chocobuckle while Eden's Eternal Breath made the Rose Beast tremble with pain. Gansal's powerful ball of energy slammed into the Beast like a bull. The three elemental GF's, Shiva, Quezacotl, and Ifrit were getting ready to cast a three-way ancient spell. Nature's Hurricane, as it was called, took the final string out of the Rose Beast. It retreated. Thus ended the battle of the First Fear.  
  
Ellone could barely hear a thing Laguna was saying. She was too concentrated on making the driver go into the past in a dream sequence.  
  
Zell rubbed his skull and brushed off the dust from his shorts. He scanned the possessed Phoenix again and confirmed that it was under the Wind Beast's control. The Wind Beast was the name of the Third Fear and wind was what it was like, blowing into bodies and feeding off their minds and bodies like a parasite. He decided to go all out. After all, items that were wasted could be found all over the place, namely the Islands closest to Heaven and Hell. Zell charged up and channeled his energies towards the Phoenix. His muscles tensed and he brought down on it a Meltdown spell. He then wasted no time by casting triple and using three Meteors. The repeated damage was not enough to stop the Phoenix, however, as it regained its concentration and sent a fireball hurling at Zell. Zell had dealt with fire enough times to know that by going through it, it would not be anything a quick temperature rise and drop. Zell jumped through the flames and executed consecutive Ultimas, taking energy from the flames. The Phoenix reared its head from the damage and screeched. It flapped its wings toward Zell, creating a Tornado. Zell blocked it with a Shell Stone and sent the Phoenix skidding across the floor with a mighty punch. He then threw a flare stone out at the Phoenix. It screeched loudly enough to reverse the direction of the stone. Zell was hit by the rock, still clutched his ears at the sound. Before he knew what hit him, he was surrounded by a thousand sparks and fire. He absorbed the damage like a dry towel and was hesitant to get up. He rubbed his sore arm muscle and cast Curaga. He then charged for his supreme combo with some new made-up moves. He started with Heel Drop and Dolphin Blow but this time, he executed a new attack, Cross Fist. This slammed his opponent in two places. He then used Ten-Forms Frenzy, in which he attacked ten times with fast and furious leopard fists. He performed his newest finishing move, Screeching Eagle, wonderfully, cutting straight into the heart of the Phoenix, instantly killing it. Zell felt sorry that he should have killed the Phoenix, for it would never revive their party members again. However, that was not his greatest concern, as the Third Fear could soon find another body to inhabit; his own.... He ran all the way out of the Centra Ruins without once looking back and was outside with forest to his left and mountain to his right with monsters creeping all around him. Exhausted, Zell plopped down after running through the forest and was happy to see a lake nearby. He took a drink in large gulps and took a Potion to ease his cut and bruises. He then fell into a deep sleep.  
  
Squall looked at the gleaming red crystal in his hands. He looked at it from all sides and decided that it was the Master Crystal. Caladorei thought that their mission was complete. Little did he know that it was just one of many crystals. The group went onto the conference room in the Ragnorak. Squall took count of everybody there. Then it hit him like a club. We're missing Zell! He frantically asked the rest of them where they last saw him, but none of them knew where to find him. Then Squall remembered. He was in the Centra Ruins.  
  
It was like a calling from Heaven itself, as if the Great Hyne was telling him personally his destiny and what to make of it. There was a white light similar to that of a blazing sun. It waved in front of Zell's eyes like a faery. Zell tried to reach for it, but he felt as if his arms were made of lead. Heavy fatigue was apparent all throughout his exhausted body. He tried to reach for it again, and succeeded only in bringing his arms up a few inches. He gathered all of his energy and took one last swipe at it. The light flickered and then went out. In its place was smoke. Zell felt refreshed and rejuvenated and felt something in his hand. He looked, and there, in his rather bloodied- up palm was a crystal. He blinked once, then twice. He rubbed his eyes and pinched himself to make sure he wasn't hallucinating and then squeezed the crystal. He placed it into his pouch and looked around. He surveyed the forest and decided to find some shelter. At first there was failure. The trees that he chose could not stop rain and weather. After searching unsuccessfully for a sturdy and weatherproof shelter, Zell saw a mountain with a cave on the east side. Zell hesitated before deciding to go in, and when he did so, it was with the aid of his cautiousness and his throwing of Flare Stones to light the way. After carefully surveying the roughly 3 yards wide and 5 yards long cave, he decided to go to the back and start a fire. Zell gathered some firewood and cast a Fire on it and immediately the wood burst to flames. Zell then decided to fortify his cave by making a door. He picked a thick, tough tree and gave it a hard whack. The tree fell down with a deafening crash that echoed through the mountains. Zell then used his mighty fists to make the tree into wooden blacks. Zell took his safety ropes and tied the blocks together, making it impenetrable to the monsters that dwelt in the mountains, namely Blitzes and Grand Mantises. He then took down branches and pine boughs and fashioned a soft "carpet". When everything was done, the sun had set and the nighttime monsters were our prowling for a tasty morsel. Zell checked his pocket and took the Potion. He then checked his pouch for everything, and all was where it should have been. He laid down on his pine "bed" and quickly fell asleep.  
  
"You see him?" Squall asked. Quistis came around the corner. "Nothing," she said. Caladorei and Kandi arrived from a different corridor. "Nothing," said Caladorei. Irvine and Selphie came back, with the same results, but it was the Disciplinary Committee that turned up something. "We found this while traveling through the staircase." Seifer held up the carcass of the dead Phoenix, now gray and stone dead. Squall examined it with a sharp look in his eyes. He turned to Rinoa. "Let's go."  
  
The morning sun caused the mountain animals to stir and awaken. Zell was already up and busy making a fire to warm the damp cave. He then set out to get food. He knew that Cockatrices, which lived in the forest, were delicious, as he tried some last year in Deling City Restaurant. He managed to pre-roast one with a Firaga and summoning Ifrit to kill it right away. After having a fine meal that filled him up, Zell looked at himself. He looked like hell. His pants were torn in several places, his shirt ripped and his jacket vest completely mangled and burnt from constant pecking from the Cockatrices and the fire of the Phoenix. He got up to explore his surroundings. When he was a good three hundred yards from his shelter, he came across a crevice within the mountains. He examined it and noticed strange markings of High Centran. When he touched it, he realized that it could only be of one material: Jind. Jind was a highly magical substance, used to make the various magic stones. As soon as Zell's hand came into contact with the Jind stone, he could immediately feel the Jind power Shadow near. This meant that the Jind stone most likely produced Ultima Stones. But taking Jind is not without consequences. Zell placed the Jind stone into his pouch, concluding that the Jind stone said, "Shadowmage Sentry", according to his basic intuition on the subject of High Centran. But when leaving for his shelter, Zell was blocked by a mysterious human-like figure in a heavy, long cloak that trailed behind him. The figure was completely black, and had no shadow. Zell said, "Move over." It did not budge. Zell asked again, this time more firmly. Once again, the cloaked figure did not move a muscle. Zell tried going around it. It sped like lightning in front of Zell. Zell tried to push it out of the way. It did not move either. This only added to Zell's already fiery temper, and he engaged in battle. Zell punched it as hard as he could, sending the figure sprawling. "Finally, something gave way," he muttered. He geared up for another attack, but before he could react, the Sentry had already hit Zell in the gut with its weapon: a tri-section whip. Zell was the one sprawling this time. He held his stomach and quickly reached into his pouch for an X- potion. He gulped it down and threw the container aside and closed his pouch. He then turned to face his enemy, but a second too late, for it had already ran behind Zell and kicked him. Zell was sent flying forward. Amazing, he thought, it has speed and power like crazy! He got up as quickly as he could and cast Protect. When he was hit again, it still hurt, but at least he was still on his feet. He released a barrage of punches and then executed his Limit Break, ending with a spectacular Cross- Fist, Ten-Forms Frenzy, and Screeching Eagle attack. The Sentry was down for the count and Zell was gathering back his energy. "Not...*huff*...so good...*huff*...when someone else...*huff*...gets the initiative, huh?" he taunted between gasps. The Sentries' eyes-where his eyes should've been-were turning a fiery, bright white. He got faster and stronger with every attack he executed. Zell got time to scan it, reading about its ability, called Shadow Fury, which gave it more power the more it attacked. Zell decided not to let it attack and tried to Blind it. With it blinded, its attacks didn't work, and its Shadow Fury was disabled. Zell took the chance to see what he could draw from it. He felt the presence of a powerful GF, and that was enough for him. He concentrated on taking the Guardian Force from the Shadowmage Sentry. When the GF was drawn, the Sentry immediately grew, weaker, as its junction was sucked away from it. Zell then took it down with three punches. The Sentry vanished, leaving behind a scroll and a black crystal. The air was thick with a foul stench. Zell casted an Aero that blew away the odor and the dust that was covering the scroll. Zell picked up the black crystal and carefully examined it. It was the size of a coin and the reflection made by it was astounding. There was none. Zell then placed it into his pocket and grabbed the scroll. It was heavy yellow parchment and the writing was from a deep, full red and High Centran. Zell tried to interpret it, but with his low level of Centran language, he could only read enough to equal squat. Zell rolled it up and placed it in his pouch to see if there was somebody who could read it. Next, Zell checked the GF that he had drawn. Channeling his energies into his GF "bank", he found out that its name was Jiyaf, a large Ice GF that had an ability that Zell wanted: Translate. Zell went into the forest to look for some monsters to test Jiyaf on. He found a Chimera, a worthy opponent, ad he immediately began summoning. It came quicker than Zell expected, and when it came, Zell could see its true shape in his ethereal form. It was male in shape, and he had icicles covering parts of his body. He was like a male Shiva. 


	7. The Strike, the Blow, and the Fall

Zell Chronicles Forgotten  
  
Chapter 7: The Strike, the Blow, and the Fall  
  
Caladorei sat in the co-pilot's seat of the bridges in the Ragnorak. He was concentrating his energies toward the crystal, but was getting several other readings from many different places. This can't be right, he thought, the crystal is here, nowhere else. He was disrupted by a sudden snapping sound. Caladorei opened his eyes, but they were out of focus. The snapping sound came again, but this time, his eyes were focused, and he saw Seifer's gloved hand, getting ready to snap again. He pushed him away and said, "I'm fine." Seifer looked at Irvine and said, "Yup, he's awake." Caladorei looked at the mountains in the distance, with great, towering peaks that stood like kings on their thrones, majestic, commanding, and rich. The crew of the Ragnorak were all busy, whether it be handling the ship, or refining magical items, or polishing and fixing weapons, or whatnot. Caladorei looked out again and this time noticed that there was a beautiful gleam out there, near the mountains. The sun was just setting, and the sky was a radiant indigo-violet. Caladorei got up out of his seat and walked towards the elevator. He passed Kandi, who was using Gansal to refine items. Kandi paused for a moment to say to Caladorei, "It is near." Caladorei nodded and continued forwards to the elevator. He went down and into the passenger deck, finding everybody else there. Seifer and Irvine followed him, and they immediately went to their own "groups". Irvine went with Quistis and Selphie, while Seifer ran to Fujin and Raijin. Caladorei collapsed on a chair and took out his scythe from the closet installed on the side of the passenger deck. He took off the shaft and replaced it with a hollow metal one. He then tied a tough string around the head and attached a Dragon Fang to that. He then added a Red fang next to it, and then added an Inferno Fang. This finished it, and the scythe looked like a shaman's staff. He then took a bracelet of Marlboro and Ochu Tentacles, cut up, and placed it in his pocket. Caladorei then looked at Squall, who was oiling the barrel of his Gunblade. Caladorei said, "We're nearing." Squall looked up at him and nodded.  
  
The city was in chaos. Ellone looked as the Rose and Cloud Beast wrecked building after building. She ran towards the shopping mall after Laguna. The Driver had already got there after abandoning Laguna and Ellone in fear. "Never hire reckless cowards. I learned it the hard way," Laguna mumbled.  
  
Zell was surprised at the sheer power of Jiyaf. He then noticed that its name was closely linked to the pronunciation of GF. Interesting. Zell went back to his shelter to prepare food for his survival. He easily took down a cockatrice in the forest and summoned Ifrit to create a small flame for the roasting. He started eating when suddenly, he heard a faint sound in the distance, like the whirring of an engine. He listened harder and recognized to sound. It was the Ragnorak. He immediately ran out of his cave and looked into the blue sky for any signs of the ship. There it was, far away. The Ragnorak was flying at a low altitude. He threw a flare stone, then another. As it came nearer, it went lower. At last it landed right in front of the shelter. Zell waved wildly. Squall and Quistis came out of the ship. Zell took his pouch, the scroll, and the crystal into the ship. Grinning, he said, "Damn, you took a long time to find me. What was the problem?" "We were stuck in a fight when we got transported somewhere else. While we did manage to make the First Fear, or Rose Beast retreat, we didn't manage to establish anymore links to the whereabouts of the other Fears. We seem to have the crystal that the Fears were after." "Wait, I've got another crystal." All eyes turned to face Zell as he pulled out the crystal from his pouch. "Here," he said, giving it to Squall. Squall examined it. At this time Caladorei spoke up. "I was afraid of this. I might have seemed confident about my information. Now we must consider this variable. What if there even more crystals that were part of a larger doing? This I do not know. But that means that since there are more crystals, that means two for us is not enough. We'll need to devise a plan to find more crystals." Irvine made a suggestion, "I know this guy in Galbadia who can find similarities between any two things including material, and energy readings. He lives in Deling, in an abandoned presidential home, so he has no natural electric system. But, since he is a genius-scientist, he would be able to make his own, right? Any way, I say we go to this guy, and see if he can detect any similarities between these two crystal-things, and ask him to build like a machine or something to help us detect crystals or whatever, y'know?" "Seems like a good idea," Quistis commented. "Let's go!" agreed Selphie. Squall nodded and gave the signal to go to Deling. When the party arrived there two hours later, Squall let Irvine take the lead. He led them to an old shabby and, it seemed, uninhabited classic mansion. He banged on the door. No answer. He opened the door slightly and peeked in. Nothing. He opened it wider and stepped in. Squall then followed. Everyone else went in. They were in the parlor. A rat that scurried across the floor was unnoticed as the party headed forward. There were cobwebs strewn everywhere like grotesque wads of yarn. Outside it was dark and stormy. "Just like in a movie," Zell commented. The group moved on cautiously and neared a hallway with five doors on the sides. Squall motioned for them to split up. Zell and Quistis went into the first door. Irvine and Selphie went into the room across from them and Squall and Rinoa went into the door next to Zell. Caladorei and Kandi were across from Squall and the Disciplinary Committee took the last one. Zell and Quistis found themselves in a kitchen, or what used to be one. It was obviously archaic-type and had a stove, a shelf and a pantry. Across from them was another door. Zell opened the pantry door and rummaged through the empty jars of food until he found an old Elixir. He stored it in his pouch and checked the stove. It was full of coals and some Flare Stones. Zell took those, and walked over to the door, followed by Quistis. On the other side of the door it was darker than ever, so Zell threw a Flare Stone which revealed the features of the room. It seemed to be the dining room. Quistis saw that the broken chairs and the table were of a strong type of wood only found in Centran forests. The ceiling was gloriously high up and painted like the sky. Suddenly, there was a deafening crash and a roar as Quistis and Zell were immediately pitted against a giant monster that rammed through the wall and stomped the Flare out. Zell ran up to it and started pounding its monstrous hide. He cast a fire which stayed on the beast as it screamed with pain. Zell got knocked away by the violent monster and was gripping his left arm which was bleeding uncontrollably. Quistis threw him a Hi-potion and started lashing out with her whip. Zell drank the Potion and Scanned the monster.  
  
On the other side of the house, Irvine and Selphie were searching the living room, or at least one of them, this being a large house. Irvine was lighting the way with a makeshift torch. Selphie was holding her arm and looking at the luxurious yet dusty and moldy and old and worn-out sofas and couches. From where they were, they couldn't hear the battle raging on between the monster and the two blond SeeDs. Irvine opened the door on the other side of the room, keeping his guard up. Selphie was holding her nunchakus "Strange Vision" in her left hand, letting one segment dangle. Through the door was a bedroom and a set of stairs and another door. "Which one do we take?" asked Selphie. "We'll flip a coin." Irvine said it with a hint a sarcasm in his voice. He got out a one Gil piece. "Heads we go up the stairs." He flipped it. Two seconds later he put it back into his pocket and "headed" up the stairs followed by Selphie. Upstairs, there was a hallway leading farther away from Zell and Quistis and one towards them instead. Irvine took out his coin again and said, "Heads we go forward." Five seconds later they were "heading" towards Zell and Quistis. Across the hallway they were met by Squall and Rinoa who have obviously been running, given their flushed faces. "Which way do we go?" Selphie asked. "How about back to the original hallway?" Squall said. "Fast," he added while grabbing Irvine's torch and running towards the stairs that Irvine and Squall just went up on. Rinoa followed and Irvine decided he didn't have a choice. He grabbed Selphie and ran after them. Squall explained while running, "We were in the west wing of the house and there were two paths. Through one he heard a roar and through the other we heard you guys. We decided to recruit you guys and then head for Zell. Get your gun out, Irvine." Irvine loaded and prepared some Pulse Ammo. The roars and screeches and yells were getting louder as they neared the main hallway from which they separated. Despite the short distance Squall's forehead was dotted with beads of sweat, partially from worry, partially of the speed that they were traveling at. Squall bashed through the doors. "Your show of concern is getting more evident now, Squall," commented Rinoa as she took her pinwheel and attached it to the launcher on her wrist. Squall only grunted in reply and opened the next door the civilized way to find Zell dodging poisonous streaks and Quistis trying to summon a GF. They all dissipated as Quezacotl flew forth and struck the beast with an electrifying jolt. When the party rematerialized, Irvine got his Exeter ready. Squall looked at the monster, which seemed to be a Blue Dragon, except it was...red? The more-than-light litigation between the Dragon and the party was soon resolved with the entire SeeD party running away from the battle. The Dragon followed to some extent, but it seemed too slow. "What the hell was that?" Squall gasped. "From Zell's readouts from his Scan it seemed as though it was a rare cousin of the Blue Dragon, and since not very many people see it, let alone survive it, have had a chance to name it, it must have been called a Red Dragon, high Spirit and Defense ratings," Quistis answered. "No wonder..." Irvine said, "Anyway, let's get the fuck away from that thing and find the other guys."  
  
Seifer was starting to get impatient. The Committee had turned up with nothing. Seifer put his hand on the doorknob leading to the next room when he heard something on the other side. Voices. He listened. "Take it," said a thin scrawny voice, almost in a whisper. Seifer put his ear up to a crack in the door. "The hell with that!" responded another one, much more tougher this time, but still quietly. "Listen, they are definitely SeeDs. We need someone who can fight them, and no one is better at the sword than you are." "Fuck that sword! I need a better one to fit my needs. Perhaps even a gunblade." "You know I can't do that! Please take the sword, kill them off. I will pay you double." "Double of 600 Gil? Make it 2000 and I'll whip their sorry asses for you." "Deal." Seifer heard the exchange of the sword as it was placed in a sheath. The clinking of coins and the ruffle of bills was heard next. Toughie was grumbling about something and Scrawny was mumbling in what seemed to be glee. Then Scrawny let out a yell and Seifer heard his body drop to the ground. Seifer thought he owed Squall everything. For his troubles and for his childhood. Seifer knew he had to repent for his sins and his craze in the past when he was still a brash youth. It was payback time. He kicked the door open and threw a fire spell into the middle of it. The room was already lighted. He saw an old man on the ground, apparently knocked out, and a big, muscleman with a Samurai's sword. He went into a defensive stance as Seifer swung at him. No use. His sword was so sharp, so tough, that his gunblade was cut in half. Seifer decided that the blade was useless and detached it from the heat gun that served its use heating the gunblade. He shot the gun twice and his shot were absorbed twice by the sword. At this time Fujin was already backing him up followed by Raijin. Seifer looked around and saw a fiery red gunblade with a label below it. Hawk Wing. Good enough, thought Seifer as he took it and looked in the revolver. Nothing. He took some Pulse Ammo and loaded it up. Raijin was struck down by a powerful blow and Fujin followed having her Sai Blade lost. Seifer swung two times to get a feel for the gunblade, and found it incredibly feather-light. Seifer pointed his new weapon at his foe. His foe pointed his sword at Seifer and told him his name. "Fosdu." "Seifer. Pleased to be your..." He swung and connected with Fosdu's sword. "...acquaintance." He slashed Fosdu's shoulder which allowed him a short break to charge for his Blood Ceremony Limit Break. He cast the necessary Fire and followed it up with his crosses. He steeped back and saw the carnage he had created. Fosdu's body was barely recognizable, and what used to be a human face was now eligible to be a zombie's. Blood was cascading down from the many wounds he had created. "You killed him off easy, ya know?" Raijin had risen. "GOOD SWORD," Fujin commented, picking herself up. It was true, the sword Fosdu carried was made of a strong material and it was super-light. Seifer picked up Fosdu's sword and compared the sword with the gunblade. No known material was that strong and useful. It also seemed as though the gunblade and the sword were sharpened extremely finely. Seifer knew he would have to test the gunblade to be able to use it to its full extent. Fujin picked up the sword and examined it. Her pinwheel was bent and in three different pieces, so she contented with the sword. They went to find more clues regarding the secrets of the mansion.  
  
Caladorei and Kandi were battling the Red Dragon Squall and party had just fought. Caladorei brought his scythe down but was reflected by the tough hide of the monster. He stood back and Kandi looked at him, ready for the signal. Caladorei nodded and concentrated. The fangs on his scythe began to shake, and emitted fire, poison, light, and ice. The energies traveled to the blade of his scythe and he put on the bracelet he had prepared. Kandi was soon hurt and jumped out of the fray and let Caladorei take over while she healed herself. The Red Dragon slashed at Caladorei, who blocked with his scythe and used his mental energies to strike the beast. He shot forth a streak of psychic power and brought down his scythe. The Dragon screamed and roared and stomped all over. Caladorei nearly got bowled over and called to Kandi. They performed their best attacks and stood back. The beast was weakened, bleeding from several places. But something in it kept on ticking, and it kept on going, tiring both of the humans. The beast cast meltdown and immediately Caladorei felt weaker, less secure. Same with Kandi. Then the Red Dragon blew fire that blinded Caladorei with its ashes and cinder. Caladorei dropped his weapon and rolled on the ground trying to put out any moderate flames that might have caught. He was grasping for his scythe and felt the hard, metal handle, grabbing it up and moving into an offensive stance. He drank down an Elixir he had in his pocket and cast Meltdown on the enemy. Soon after the Dragon fell and its life ended. Caladorei wiped all the sweat away from his forehead. and stood there, using his scythe as support for his exhausted, panting body. Kandi was sitting down on one of the old sofas and was taking deep breaths to try to wear off some of the adrenaline that ad pumped so powerfully during the battle. Both of them could feel the presence of more evil beings in the tainted mansion. Caladorei doubted that a scientist or kooky professor or whatever really resided within the flimsy walls. Caladorei needed to find Irvine.  
  
*Three Months Later*  
  
"Thank you, doctor," Squall said. He accepted the strange installment in the Ragnorak because of Irvine's claims of this doctor's "authenticity". Three months ago they had been searching for him in the wrong place. He had moved and was on an island off of Trabia, where Squall was now. The mansion was now empty save a few monsters who worked their ways in. Squall was alone and chose to do this alone. He would have an easier time not drawing attention from the Fears. He quickly boarded the Ragnorak and drove back to Balamb. Caladorei and Kandi were inaugurated as SeeDs by order of Cid. The Disciplinary Committee had to go through a test to prove themselves and earn back Cid's and Squall's trust. Seifer had really changed likewise the other two. When he came back his friends at Garden he announced that the sensor for crystals worked. Now all they had to do was find an energy source. "Fuck," Zell said. "Delays...." "What kind of an energy source?" inquired Quistis. "Something like a...Konim or something," Squall mumbled in reply. "Konims! They can be found in really hot places but are really rare. Ruby Dragons have particles of Konims inside them, that's what makes their breath so hot." "Always depend on Quisty to talk about all that science shit...," Seifer grumbled. He was rewarded by a smack on the back of the head. "We could find one in the Fire Cavern!" Selphie suggested. Everyone looked at Squall for an answer. "Alright." The party decided to walk there and cut through a path in the wild forest. Besides, it was easy dealing with Bite Bugs and Caterchipillars. Zell secretly wished he could run into a T-Rexuar. They arrived without any trouble. Zell took off his outer jacket which left him in a black T-shirt. They entered. 


End file.
